Sydney, Australia — Australia’s prime minister ordered a federal inquiry Monday into allegations of child sex abuse in state and religious institutions and community groups after a string of sexual-abuse accusations against priests and claims of a Catholic Church cover-up.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard had faced mounting pressure to order a wide-ranging investigation after the New South Wales state premier last week ordered an inquiry into allegations of a sexualabuse cover-up by Catholicpriests in the Hunter Valley region north of Sydney. Victorian officials are also investigating a separate series of priest sex-abuse allegations in their state.
“Any instance of child abuse is a vile and evil thing. Australians know that,” Gillard told reporters in Canberra. “Australians know, from the revelations that they’ve read in recent weeks, that too many children have suffered child abuse but have also seen other adults let them down. They’ve not only had their trust betrayed by the abuser, but other adults who couldhave acted to assist them have failed to do so.”
The investigation will target religious and state institutions, schools and community groups such as sporting clubs. It will also look into police responses to abuse allegations and is expected to take several years to complete.
Last week, New South Wales ordered a state inquiry after a veteran police detective wrote an open letter to the premier accusing the Catholic Church of thwarting his attempts to investigate allegations of child sex abuse in the Hunter Valley.
Front Section, Pages 5 on 11/13/2012